A bill that sought to effectively reinstate affirmative action in UC’s and CSU’s was vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Sunday, Oct. 9.

The bill, titled SB 185, was proposed as a means to counteract a 1996 law called Proposition 209, which effectively ended affirmative action in community colleges. Gov. Brown vetoed SB 185 under the pretext that it was a matter for the courts, not the legislature, to decide on the matter.

Days prior to Gov. Brown’s decision, Skyline’s ASSC voted in support of SB 185 on Thursday, Oct. 6. The next day, student senator Dean Santos was attempting to drum up student support by handing out fliers urging students to call their local representatives. Santos supported the measure because he believes that the current ban on affirmative action puts underprivileged students at a disadvantage, making it more difficult for students to gain access to higher education.

“It’s (Proposition 209) an institutional barrier to higher education, which in turn manifests itself as institutional racism,” Santos said. Supporters of SB 185 have also cited statistical evidence in favor of the bill.

Since 1995, there has been a steady decrease in the number of African American and Latino students admitted to California Universities. At UC Berkeley, for instance, the number of African American students has fallen from 7 percent to 3.7 percent, and the number of Latino students has decreased from 18 percent to 14.8 percent.

However, not all students felt that it would be appropriate to reinstate affirmative action. “I don’t think they should bring it back,” said Andre Lacy, a first-year Skyline student. “Race shouldn’t matter in who gets in.” The issue of affirmative action has been a source of controversy in recent weeks, most notably in the form of a bake sale protest on the uc Berkeley campus where students who were opposed to affirmative action attempted to demonstrate their views by adjusting the prices of baked goods in accordance with race. The now infamous bake sale was met with a great deal of negative backlash.

According to the text of the bill, “The bill would authorize the University of California and require the California State University to consider race, gender, ethnicity, and national origin, along with other relevant factors, in undergraduate and graduate admissions, to the maximum extent permitted by the 14th amendment.” Skyline Political Science Professor Jeff Diamond stated that the language of the bill made it somewhat dubious.

“My sense was it wasn’t going to stand up to court challenges anyway,” Diamond said. “I don’t think that any court in the country would think it makes sense.”